From Late-Night Game Hobbyist to Successful Studio Owner, with Colm Larkin

Playmakers - The Game Industry Podcast

In this episode:

Jordan sits down with Colm Larkin, a programmer, game designer, and board game enthusiast. He is the founder of Gambrinous and creator of indie hits Guild of Dungeoneering and Cardpocalypse. Colm has recently been appointed as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) at IMIRT, the Irish Game Makers Association. In this interview, Colm shares his inspiring journey from part-time game developer to full-time studio owner and discusses the lessons learned along the way.

Topics covered:

• Colm’s transition from part-time to full-time game development
• The importance of conquering perfectionism when building your game
• What helped Colm the most in getting his first game off the ground
• How to know when it’s time to start expanding your team as an indie developer
• To animate or not to animate? The impacts of art on your creation process
• How to set yourself up for success when it comes to seeking out a publisher

For more game industry tips:

• Learn more about Jordan & Bright Black
• Listen on iTunes | Spotify (Support the show and leave a review)
• Visit www.playmakerspodcast.com for the full blog post and more!

Timestamps:

[04:51] Colm’s journey from part-time game dev to full-time studio owner

[06:18] The "One Game a Month" challenge and the early development of Guild of Dungeoneering

[10:41] Overcoming perfectionism and finishing projects

[17:15] How Colm knew it was time to expand the team

19:04 Managing time and being productive as an indie developer

20:47 Partnering with an artist and how it transformed Guild of Dungeoneering

[22:59] How unique art styles can help indie games stand out

[28:02] Early marketing strategies and pre-order success

[30:06] Advice on working with publishers and finding the right fit

[34:48] Colm’s thoughts on oversharing and working on a “secret” project

Resources & media mentioned in this episode:

Connect with Colm Larkin:

• LinkedIn
• Twitter

Learn more about Gambrinous:

• Website
• Check out the announcement of Colm’s Secret Project!
• Watch Colm’s talk: “Share Your Games”

Games & companies mentioned:

• Guild of Dungeoneering (Gambrinous)
• Cardpocalypse (Gambrinous)
• Spelunky (Derek Yu)
• Papers, Please (Lucas Pope)
• Minecraft (Mojang)
• Limbo (Playdead)
• Superhot (Superhot Team)
• Cuphead (Studio MDHR)
• The Banner Saga (Stoic Studio)
• Versus Evil (Publisher)
• Steam Greenlight (Valve)